Conventionally, a programmable display apparatus that is communicably connected to a programmable logic controller (PLC) is known. For example, JP 2008-112222A discloses a programmable display apparatus that includes an HMI processing unit and a face log processing unit. The face log processing unit includes a facial image database, a face detection unit, a shared memory, a face logging unit, a face log control unit, and a face log file. This programmable display apparatus is communicably connected to a camera.
When an operator performs a predetermined switch operation on a screen displayed on the programmable display apparatus, the HMI processing unit instructs the face log processing unit to execute processing for logging a facial image of the operator. Once the face log processing unit has received this instruction, the face detection unit detects a full-face image from among images of the operator captured by the camera, and stores the detected full-face image into a predetermined facial image database as a file. The face detection unit also writes a path name of the file in the facial image database to the shared memory together with information related to an operation history, such as the details of the switch operation, the date and time of face detection, and a screen number of the screen on which the switch operation was performed. The face log control unit instructs the face logging unit to store data written to the shared memory into the face log file.
Meanwhile, a facial authentication technique is conventionally known. For example, JP 2004-78687A discloses an entrance/exit management system that performs facial authentication. This entrance/exit management system manages entrance to and exit from a facility using a face cross-reference apparatus that cross-references whether or not an entering/exiting person is a pre-registered person based on a facial image of the entering/exiting person. In the entrance/exit management system, a surveillance camera that captures an image of an entering/exiting person is installed in the vicinity of the face cross-reference apparatus. The image from the surveillance camera is recorded into a recording unit, and transmitted to an entrance/exit management server together with an entrance/exit history, such as the result of cross-reference performed by the face cross-reference apparatus.
JP 2011-59194A discloses an image forming apparatus that includes an image capturing device, an operation screen control unit, and a display unit. The operation screen control unit includes a facial region detection unit, a movement determination unit, a facial feature extraction unit, an attribute detection unit, and a display control unit. The facial region detection unit detects a facial region of a user from image data captured by the image capturing device. The movement determination unit determines whether or not the user is approaching the image forming apparatus. If the movement determination unit determines that the user is approaching the image forming apparatus, the facial feature extraction unit extracts features of a face from the facial region. The attribute detection unit detects an attribute of the user based on the features of the face extracted by the facial feature extraction unit. The display control unit displays, on the display unit of the image forming apparatus, an operation screen corresponding to the attribute of the user detected by the attribute detection unit.
JP 2008-165353A discloses a surveillance system that monitors a person who operates a surveillance apparatus. This surveillance system includes an operator surveillance apparatus. The operator surveillance apparatus includes a camera, a facial image storage unit, and an operation authority identification unit. The camera captures a face of the operating person and outputs facial image data. Facial image data for cross-reference is pre-registered in the facial image storage unit together with a range of operation authorities. The operation authority identification unit identifies a range of operation authorities of the operating person by cross-referencing facial image data of the operating person, which is retrieved either periodically or each time an operation is performed, with the facial image data for cross-reference. The operation authority identification unit changes an operable range of the surveillance apparatus in accordance with the range of operation authorities.
JP 2008-112222A, JP 2004-78687A, JP 2011-59194A, and JP 2008-165353A are examples of background art.
The programmable display apparatus of JP 2008-112222A can leave the result of facial authentication as a history, but cannot permit access to an application using facial authentication. Therefore, JP 2008-112222A does not enable recording of a history indicating transition to a state in which access to the application has been permitted based on permission to access to the application through facial authentication. Permission of access to an application using facial authentication is neither disclosed nor suggested in JP 2004-78687A, JP 2011-59194A, and JP 2008-165353A.